Converting to primes - would love some opinions

[btaylor]

I have been a happy 24mm f/1.4 user, but now I love me Zeiss, just like me spinach.
Zeiss 21mm and 35mm are dreamy to use and work very well.

I do like the Zeiss lenses Steve but I'd still be heavily dependent on autofocus in the 24mm range so unfortunately I don't think they'll work for me there.

I love my 24mm f/1.4 II and it was definitely worth the upgrade over the mark I for me. But I don't recommend sacrificing your ultrawide range just to get the Mark II -- a lot of times 24 just isn't wide enough. So you should look for some way to afford both a 24mm and a 14mm from the start. My suggestion is to go for the inexpensive Samyang (AKA Rokinon) 14mm f/2.8.

At this stage I don't think I'd be in a position to go for the 14mm as well Daniel. Especially considering the 5D3 is on the cards for later on in the year. To be honest I haven't read a huge amount about the Samyang so I have a look at a few reviews. I do know that it is manual focus only which is fine for that focal length as I'd generally be shooting off a tripod and setting up for a shot. I'll see, it's defiinitely an option. If it appears to perform well then I could always sell both my lenses, keep the Samyang in the back of my mind, and if 24mm isn't wide enough for me purchase it on that premise.

Dr Croubie - thanks for the ideas. However I'm pretty dependent on autofocus to be honest, especially in a walk around / general purpose focal length. I understand the the split screens do make it easier to manual focus however if/when I upgrade to the 5D3 I'm not sure whether split/focus screens will be available for it (with the new intelligent viewfinder). Although I do believe the 7D has the same viewfinder so I'll check out the katz eye screens anyway. In saying that, I don't think I'd be prepared to go all out on the manual focus front. For an UWA lens I think I'd be more than happy manually focussing.

Lots to think about, better read a couple of reviews on the Samyang.

Cheers,

Ben

[neuroanatomist]

I understand the the split screens do make it easier to manual focus however if/when I upgrade to the 5D3 I'm not sure whether split/focus screens will be available for it (with the new intelligent viewfinder). Although I do believe the 7D has the same viewfinder so I'll check out the katz eye screens anyway.

The 5D3 is like the 7D in that Canon does not consider the focus screen to be user-replaceable, and swapping them out is difficult and carries some risk. FWIW, it's a choice made by Canon, not a mandate of the transmissive LCD (intelligent VF) - the 1D X has the transmissive LCD and does support all the usual 1-series focus screens.